What Crate Royal Albert could bring to Royal Docks in Newham

“There were 665,000 startups registered last year in the UK – if you think about that along with sole traders and partnerships, it’s well over a million,” said Crate founder Adam Walker.

“Still, unfortunately, six out of 10 fail in the first five years; the UK has some of the highest failure rates in Europe.

“It’s those five-year failure rates that drive Crate. We want to help reverse them.”

Having demonstrated his concept on an industrial estate in Loughton, part of Adam’s strategy to address that problem could be popping up in Royal Docks in 2019.

He’s currently in talks with ABP London, Newham Council and the GLA ahead of submitting a planning application for a site next to Royal Albert DLR.

But what is Crate and what could it mean for the area?

Credit Matt Grayson

“Two years ago, I was doing a project in Loughton and I noticed a vacant site opposite on the same industrial estate,” said Adam.

“I looked over, I was on the roof of the project, and I saw this half-acre plot, which was in a prime position on local authority employment land and I noticed a guy washing a car there.

“I thought it wasn’t a particularly good use of the space, so I went to the local authority with an idea.”

That idea was the genesis for Crate and the site became host to Adam’s proof of concept.

Constructed of shipping containers stacked on top of each other, Crate Loughton is home to 39 businesses.

Deliberately curated, they come from a diverse range of industries with the whole scheme anchored by a branch of Costa – the world’s first on an industrial estate or, for that matter, in a shipping container.

“We’re not sector specific – focussed on tech or food and beverage, for example,” said Adam.

“They’re not all starups, they’re not all established SMEs or micro SMEs.

“You’re mixing pre-revenue businesses with established companies like Costa.

“The local authority loved it, we took it through planning in about six months and delivered it in about six more.

“It’s all about mixing SMEs and micro SMEs and aspirational entrepreneurs with startups.

“They all have as much to learn as each other.

Credit Matt Grayson

“Crate is a peer learning model – we deliver a platform for growing businesses and we curate it heavily.

“That’s why it’s important to have businesses like Costa, which is a franchise model. This is our franchisee’s 30th store, so other businesses can learn from him.

“There’s never a conflict and it’s always an opportunity to cross-fertilise, to get into each other’s supply chains.

“We have an on-site curator who isn’t a business guru, but is there to gently facilitate entrepreneurs getting together, to make sure everyone is learning from each other and working together.

“That’s part of the wrapped up package of becoming a Crater.

“Tenants pay rent for their space, they’re on a relatively flexible year licence to occupy and there are no long leases.

“The rates are include cleaning, security and a data connection – it’s a turnkey premises solution.

“Business support – we call it Boost – is included within that yearly rate.

Central to the concept, however, is creating a flow of businesses rather than filling the spaces permanently.

“They key for us is we don’t want companies to come to Crate and stop growing,” said Adam.

“We want them to leave – that is a success story. We don’t want them for five or 10 years.

“We want them for that stage of their journey where we help them grow from a desk to a single crate, maybe even a double crate but then at some point they need to fly the nest.

“For example, Never Fully Dressed is a great emerging fashion brand.

“They came to Crate Loughton and outgrew us very quickly going from a 300sq ft space to a 2,500sq ft space.

“It’s a great example of a wonderful, female-based business.

“Another is Iconic London, a makeup company that, after nine months in a 300sq ft space, is now in much bigger offices growing its business.

“One of the lessons learned in Loughton is we need more grow-on space in these locations.

“We have also experienced failure – businesses fail.

“But we are trying to reduce those risks in an environment that promotes growth, doesn’t want to hold businesses in and is able to backfill those spaces very quickly.”

Credit Matt Grayson

The intention is a Crate scheme, whether it be the existing Loughton facility, Adam’s follow-up in St James Street in Walthamstow or the one planned for Royal Docks, is that churn of business activity can help seed other projects.

That will be particularly relevant for the Newham facility with 15million sq ft of office space being built by ABP London.

“Crate Royal Albert, was born out of a pretty flimsy vision I had when I visited the area and saw this piece of land out the front of Newham Council’s offices,” said Adam.

“I thought it would be a great spot for one.

“I understood ABP London’s vision for the gateway, totally bought into it and realised that there was a real opportunity to create an incredible place between now and when that scheme is finished.

“The opportunity to placemake on that site at Royal Albert.

“We’re currently in commercial talks with both parties and we’re negotiating on the piece of land.

“The plan is we’ll go onto the site for a set period of time – pick up what we’ve done at Crate Loughton and more or less pitch it up in Royal Docks.

“The concept is based on about 60 businesses with food and beverage anchors at both ends.

“Then key to all of it is that communal courtyard, the space between the crates where the superstructure can be used as an event space.

Credit Matt Grayson

“It’s public realm. They’re not member zones. There will be parking, but it will be grab and go.

“It’s a destination and it’s not aimed at retail.

“The schemes are very mixed use and are not footfall-driven.

“It will be a scheme that’s focussed on stitching in to the local community and giving entrepreneurs the opportunity to get set up ahead of what’s coming.

“Crate Royal Albert will, in theory, seed some of the ABP London space being built.”

Prices are likely to be similar to Loughton where desk membership is available for £225 a month and a single crate costs £1,200.

In addition to rolling out the container-based schemes, Adam is keen for Crate to help residential developers deal with commercial space at the bottom of their buildings, whether that’s after construction when they’ve been let down by a prospective tenant or, preferably, at the planning stage.

Under CEO John Walker (no relation) and with a management team in place, the intention is to roll out 25 over the next 10 years.

Adam talks enthusiastically about the value of living close to work and helping to “activate” places while the forces of regeneration take hold.

To do that, he’s keen to attract future Craters with the aim of offering advice and space.

“Our big drive with Royal Albert will be demand analysis,” said Adam.

“Really getting under the skin of what’s going on and understanding what that will look like.

“All around the ABP site there’s an incredible amount of development coming over the next 10 years and a lack of community and part of that story will be Crate.

“I think the activation role is a massive part of development – the ability to create the place 10 years in advance of project completion.

Credit Matt Grayson

“A Crate scheme doesn’t just land at Royal Albert and then decants. Meanwhile use has to have a legacy to be worthwhile.

“For me it’s about what happens at year seven when Crate Royal Albert has to go because there’s a block going on the site.